Berkline theater seats and Optoma HD20 1080p projector. You can see one of the in-wall speakers. The room has a 5.1 setup, 3 of whiich are behind the acoustically transparent 100" movie screen (built by me).

46" Sony Bravia TV, HTDDW7600 Mu-Te-Ki 7.2 HTIB system, HTPC cobbled together out of a bunch of spare parts (it's obsolete as hell but it does its job good). PS3, X360, classic Xbox, PS2 and gamecube are in the cabinet below the TV.

46" Sony Bravia TV, HTDDW7600 Mu-Te-Ki 7.2 HTIB system, HTPC cobbled together out of a bunch of spare parts (it's obsolete as hell but it does its job good). PS3, X360, classic Xbox, PS2 and gamecube are in the cabinet below the TV.

Looks good but it would look better if the wire behind the right front speaker went straight up at the corner of the brick wall and if the wire on the left hand wall went straight up instead of at the diagonal it runs now. Oh and you could probably combine all the wires coming out of the TV going straight down in a bunch.

Looks good but it would look better if the wire behind the right front speaker went straight up at the corner of the brick wall and if the wire on the left hand wall went straight up instead of at the diagonal it runs now. Oh and you could probably combine all the wires coming out of the TV going straight down in a bunch.

I do like the black on grey brick look though!

The wire on the right is actually an ethernet cable that's plugged into the PS3 (beats the **** out of the wireless connection :P ). The one on the left is that way due to a length issue, but I'm going to upgrade from the stock speaker cable anyway - already done for the fronts, centre and subwoofers. Nice thick 16awg wire, instead of the thin-as-**** stuff that came with them.

And the cables behind the tv will get cleaned up as soon as everyone is properly reconnected back there. That cabinet you see is brand new, it was two bookshelves before :P

The wire on the right is actually an ethernet cable that's plugged into the PS3 (beats the **** out of the wireless connection :P ). The one on the left is that way due to a length issue, but I'm going to upgrade from the stock speaker cable anyway - already done for the fronts, centre and subwoofers. Nice thick 16awg wire, instead of the thin-as-**** stuff that came with them.

And the cables behind the tv will get cleaned up as soon as everyone is properly reconnected back there. That cabinet you see is brand new, it was two bookshelves before :P

This is my basement Home Theatre. I have two other rooms driven by HTPCs, with 11.1 and 7.1 sound systems. Those pics will follow soon. Forgive the iPhone 3G pics in this album. Also, the album chronicles the construction of the room, so see later pics to cut to the chase. All pics captioned with an explanation of what's going on. HTPC specs in the last pic.

Here's a teaser of the (almost) finished room and speaker info from another thread:

The speakers (labeled below each one in the pic). They're all from Monoprice and sound exceptional for the price.
I'm using an Onkyo TX-NR5007 receiver. This is a 9.2 receiver that allows 11 channels to be hooked up. Only 9 are active at any one time - a traditional 7.1 setup with either high or wide speakers, which you can switch between for different material. Normally the wide configuration sounds great, but action movies benefit from the high speakers for overhead effects like planes and helicopters weather etc.

1) The left and right speakers are the 8" 3-way 6816s.
I love these speakers - possibly the best bang for buck ever. I'm using another two pairs as surround and surround back speakers.

2) The "wide" speakers are the micro-flanged 8-Ohm centre channel 6317s in a vertical orientation.
I needed something quite narrow here, and it was before I was aware of the 7604s that are so popular in this thread of late.

3) The "high" speakers are the 8" 2-way 4101s.
I already have 6 of these in the dining room (before the 6816s were available). I thought they were outstanding value.

4) The centre "speaker" is actually four micro-flanged 8-Ohm centre channel 6317s.
Two are above the screen and two below. They're wired in series-parallel to provide a single 8 Ohm load to the receiver. I took a gamble with how this was going to turn out and it actually worked beautifully! With four of these the voices in videos aren't anaemic. Nor does dialogue appear to come from below or above the screen as in the case of a single speaker placed above or below a large screen like this 120". Voices seem to come from about where talking heads usually appear on screen - just a little higher than halfway up the picture.

I couldn't be happier with the way the room sounds. All my guest are blown away by the sound quality, and then once more when I tell them the total cost of the 14 speakers and two subs. The savings allowed me to get platforms built and have buttkickers/bass shakers added to each seat, which adds to the overall feel of movies on this room. The fact that there is a ton of sonopan in the walls and ceilings probably helps, as does the special foam floor tiles we installed.

Wow that looks amazing, I'm super jealous. I don't know too much about monoprice speakers but may I ask why you went so cheap on speakers with such a humongous project?

Thanks very much!

I read the reviews on the Monoprice site. They were glowing, and many of the users had come from using much more expensive speakers.

I bought some for a 7.1 system in the dining room. They sounded great, and I had paid just a few hundred for them and a subwoofer. So, when they released an even better, more powerful line, I really wished I had installed those.

I put them in the basement home theatre and it literally blew me away. I think the ample acoustic treatments in the room really help. My contractor is used to his multi-thousand dollar Mission set-up, and even he felt that my system sounded better than his... especially when he considered how little it cost. We're going into business building home theatres eventually. I design, he builds; we both troubleshoot. My motto was "90% of the pro HT experience at 10% of the cost." We will offer the same to the clients.

The basement project kind of evolved to what it is today. It was going to be a gym, with a wall recessed 55" TV. Then I thought about adding an electric screen and projector for movies. We built a make-shift screen for a one-off event and it surpassed all expectations for 1/5 to 1/10 the cost of a pre-made one. I forgot all thoughts of having a TV at all. Now we have the touchscreen for the times when I'm working out and don't need the projector on.

46" Sony Bravia TV, HTDDW7600 Mu-Te-Ki 7.2 HTIB system, HTPC cobbled together out of a bunch of spare parts (it's obsolete as hell but it does its job good). PS3, X360, classic Xbox, PS2 and gamecube are in the cabinet below the TV.

Hello mate nice setup just a comment if you lowered you TV you wound'nt see those wires.
STB

Quote:

Originally Posted by fitbrit

This is my basement Home Theatre. I have two other rooms driven by HTPCs, with 11.1 and 7.1 sound systems. Those pics will follow soon. Forgive the iPhone 3G pics in this album. Also, the album chronicles the construction of the room, so see later pics to cut to the chase. All pics captioned with an explanation of what's going on. HTPC specs in the last pic.

Here's a teaser of the (almost) finished room and speaker info from another thread:

The speakers (labeled below each one in the pic). They're all from Monoprice and sound exceptional for the price.
I'm using an Onkyo TX-NR5007 receiver. This is a 9.2 receiver that allows 11 channels to be hooked up. Only 9 are active at any one time - a traditional 7.1 setup with either high or wide speakers, which you can switch between for different material. Normally the wide configuration sounds great, but action movies benefit from the high speakers for overhead effects like planes and helicopters weather etc.

1) The left and right speakers are the 8" 3-way 6816s.
I love these speakers - possibly the best bang for buck ever. I'm using another two pairs as surround and surround back speakers.

2) The "wide" speakers are the micro-flanged 8-Ohm centre channel 6317s in a vertical orientation.
I needed something quite narrow here, and it was before I was aware of the 7604s that are so popular in this thread of late.

3) The "high" speakers are the 8" 2-way 4101s.
I already have 6 of these in the dining room (before the 6816s were available). I thought they were outstanding value.

4) The centre "speaker" is actually four micro-flanged 8-Ohm centre channel 6317s.
Two are above the screen and two below. They're wired in series-parallel to provide a single 8 Ohm load to the receiver. I took a gamble with how this was going to turn out and it actually worked beautifully! With four of these the voices in videos aren't anaemic. Nor does dialogue appear to come from below or above the screen as in the case of a single speaker placed above or below a large screen like this 120". Voices seem to come from about where talking heads usually appear on screen - just a little higher than halfway up the picture.

I couldn't be happier with the way the room sounds. All my guest are blown away by the sound quality, and then once more when I tell them the total cost of the 14 speakers and two subs. The savings allowed me to get platforms built and have buttkickers/bass shakers added to each seat, which adds to the overall feel of movies on this room. The fact that there is a ton of sonopan in the walls and ceilings probably helps, as does the special foam floor tiles we installed.

I first differce I see between the 5K and 6K are 2 extra HDD holders, and will accept a full
size ATX MOBO.
I'll have to read more on the 6K

?1.why do some HTPC cases come w/ a tiny speaker? and what is the function of such a tiny speaker?

?.2.can blue ray DVDs be ripped from WMC recordings, or just high def.?

?3.what are your thoughts on refurbished or used MOBO?

?4.did you intall the optional LCD display? if yes what all doe's it display is it like a status
of play w/ either HDD or DVD like lenght of play total time of play also doe's it display the
tepuatures of the inside of case and CPU?

?5 I've read a little about this cases DVD tray sticking have you experienced this?

? 6. can I connect a windows 95 LT screen to a modern MOBO to use as a GUI?

very nice 1. comment then a few ?s
comment I would hide the speaker wire behind the wood paneling?

questions

?1.why do some HTPC cases come w/ a tiny speaker? and what is the function of such a tiny speaker?

?.2.can blue ray DVDs be ripped from WMC recordings, or just high def.?

?3.what are your thoughts on refurbished or used MOBO?

?4.did you intall the optional LCD display? if yes what all doe's it display is it like a status
of play w/ either HDD or DVD like lenght of play total time of play also doe's it display the
tepuatures of the inside of case and CPU?

?5 I've read a little about this cases DVD tray sticking have you experienced this?

? 6. can I connect a windows 95 LT screen to a modern MOBO to use as a GUI?

Thanks STB

Speaker wires aren't hidden for 2 reasons. One, I'm still experimenting on placement. Two, the system is only temporary till I move.

A1-About the only thing the speaker might be good for is the beep code when booting or troubleshooting boot problems. (My case doesn't have one & it would be useless to me.)

A2- Can't answer but probably no because of DRM. You could most likely find some 3rd party software that will. DVDFab or something.

A3- I would never buy anything refurbished. However, it might actually be a good deal if the manufacturer actually thoroughly tested the product & made sure it's up to snuff before reselling.

A4- No LCD display here. Figured it would just be a gimmick. Also, for some reason the HDD light doesn't work on my case.

A5- Optical drive door can be tricky. Just be careful when you build. What happened to me is when putting everything in place the button that opens the door of the dvd-rom was tight against the button on the case and thus didn't work. You will see if you do a test fit. Now that everything is in place it works like a champ.

A6- Not sure I understand what a Windows 95 LT screen is.

One more comment on the case. I put both hard drives in the lower bays opposite the dvd-rom. This way I could use one power cable with 2 sata plugs for both drives. It also 'balanced' the weight since the power supply is on the opposite side.

I considered the 5000 case but the external dimensions are close to the 6000. I like having a full size atx mb w/separate video card. Had the 5000 case been noticeably smaller I could have been tempted to buy it.

Speaker wires aren't hidden for 2 reasons. One, I'm still experimenting on placement. Two, the system is only temporary till I move.

A1-About the only thing the speaker might be good for is the beep code when booting or troubleshooting boot problems. (My case doesn't have one & it would be useless to me.)

A2- Can't answer but probably no because of DRM. You could most likely find some 3rd party software that will. DVDFab or something.

A3- I would never buy anything refurbished. However, it might actually be a good deal if the manufacturer actually thoroughly tested the product & made sure it's up to snuff before reselling.

A4- No LCD display here. Figured it would just be a gimmick. Also, for some reason the HDD light doesn't work on my case.

A5- Optical drive door can be tricky. Just be careful when you build. What happened to me is when putting everything in place the button that opens the door of the dvd-rom was tight against the button on the case and thus didn't work. You will see if you do a test fit. Now that everything is in place it works like a champ.

A6- Not sure I understand what a Windows 95 LT screen is.

One more comment on the case. I put both hard drives in the lower bays opposite the dvd-rom. This way I could use one power cable with 2 sata plugs for both drives. It also 'balanced' the weight since the power supply is on the opposite side.

I considered the 5000 case but the external dimensions are close to the 6000. I like having a full size atx mb w/separate video card. Had the 5000 case been noticeably smaller I could have been tempted to buy it.

Hello Pitdaddy:
OK cool I forget about the tiny PC speaker.

A3 are Blue ray optical recorders even available? I have a BD player and would like to use it for playback (ripping only excellent shows whorth saving to DVD). I'm thinking the HTPC optical drive is mainly for installing OS ? also I see you have 2 large capistiy HDDs why did'nt you use a small HDD just for OS only . I'm assumming you are using one of the HDD for OS and also using it for storage?

I see you are using Linux so are you using XBMC? and catorizing using genre's w/ detailed thumbnails?

A4.how do you know how far into a recording and the rest of the status details? do you have like a WMC remote w/ a status button? if yes doe's it display on the TV?

A6: I have a old windows 95 lap top and the LCD screen is still functional just curious if I could connect a ribbon cable to a modern MOBO and use screen as a GUI?

why did you use a AMD MOBO I'm thinking w/ a I3 CPU I won't need a video card since the I3 has video intergrated into the CPU, I'm thinking w/ a I3 CPU all I'll need is a WMC compatiable dual TV tuner card?

Sorry for so many ?s I have been Studying HTPC
Thanks for advice I'm reseaching so I can make a educated guess on exactly what I expect from a HTPC.
STB

I read the reviews on the Monoprice site. They were glowing, and many of the users had come from using much more expensive speakers.

I bought some for a 7.1 system in the dining room. They sounded great, and I had paid just a few hundred for them and a subwoofer. So, when they released an even better, more powerful line, I really wished I had installed those.

I put them in the basement home theatre and it literally blew me away. I think the ample acoustic treatments in the room really help. My contractor is used to his multi-thousand dollar Mission set-up, and even he felt that my system sounded better than his... especially when he considered how little it cost. We're going into business building home theatres eventually. I design, he builds; we both troubleshoot. My motto was "90% of the pro HT experience at 10% of the cost." We will offer the same to the clients.

The basement project kind of evolved to what it is today. It was going to be a gym, with a wall recessed 55" TV. Then I thought about adding an electric screen and projector for movies. We built a make-shift screen for a one-off event and it surpassed all expectations for 1/5 to 1/10 the cost of a pre-made one. I forgot all thoughts of having a TV at all. Now we have the touchscreen for the times when I'm working out and don't need the projector on.

Every body who buys those monoprice speakers say the same thing! Im actually considering getting some to replace my old Denon speakers that came with my Htib lol

No subwoofer I've heard has been able to produce the bass I've experienced in the Corps!

Every body who buys those monoprice speakers say the same thing! Im actually considering getting some to replace my old Denon speakers that came with my Htib lol

Yes very impressive value for money, and will undoubtedly sound better than the HTIB. Just a note though; you can only judge the true sound of these when installed in a wall, and with a little breaking in period, I think.

A3 are Blue ray optical recorders even available? I have a BD player and would like to use it for playback (ripping only excellent shows whorth saving to DVD). I'm thinking the HTPC optical drive is mainly for installing OS ? also I see you have 2 large capistiy HDDs why did'nt you use a small HDD just for OS only . I'm assumming you are using one of the HDD for OS and also using it for storage?

I see you are using Linux so are you using XBMC? and catorizing using genre's w/ detailed thumbnails?

A4.how do you know how far into a recording and the rest of the status details? do you have like a WMC remote w/ a status button? if yes doe's it display on the TV?

A6: I have a old windows 95 lap top and the LCD screen is still functional just curious if I could connect a ribbon cable to a modern MOBO and use screen as a GUI?

why did you use a AMD MOBO I'm thinking w/ a I3 CPU I won't need a video card since the I3 has video intergrated into the CPU, I'm thinking w/ a I3 CPU all I'll need is a WMC compatiable dual TV tuner card?

Sorry for so many ?s I have been Studying HTPC
Thanks for advice I'm reseaching so I can make a educated guess on exactly what I expect from a HTPC.
STB

Blu Ray burners are available for @$100. Your idea of ripping blu ray to hdd is what I would do too. Why do I have 2 1tb drives? Because I'm a space hog. Actually, I started with one 1tb drive and added the second to back up anything important. This leads to my second comment...

My choice of hardware & software all hinges around the fact I'm using MythTV. It is a DVR app that runs on the Linux OS. NVidia graphics give better results on Linux. If you take the Windows OS route using Media Center an I3 is a wise choice. Knowing how far into a show or recording is easily found via the program used to view it simply with the press of a key. With MythTV it's 'i", and VLC just move the mouse.

As far as tv tuner cards my preference was a 'name brand' (e.g. Hauppauge) rather than some unknown card.

My suggestion to you is stick with your I3 system & Windows. Linux can be a pain in the rear & demands a lot of tweaking. Check out a good Home Theater in a box such as the entry level Onkyo or Denon package with speakers.

Go thru the forums and read up in Assassin's Guide & renethx's Guide to Building a HD HTPC. Both renethx & assassin have a wealth of information in those two sections.

ps- send that old laptop to a recycle center. LCD monitors are dirt cheap today.

Blu Ray burners are available for @$100. Your idea of ripping blu ray to hdd is what I would do too. Why do I have 2 1tb drives? Because I'm a space hog. Actually, I started with one 1tb drive and added the second to back up anything important. This leads to my second comment...

My choice of hardware & software all hinges around the fact I'm using MythTV. It is a DVR app that runs on the Linux OS. NVidia graphics give better results on Linux. If you take the Windows OS route using Media Center an I3 is a wise choice. Knowing how far into a show or recording is easily found via the program used to view it simply with the press of a key. With MythTV it's 'i", and VLC just move the mouse.

As far as tv tuner cards my preference was a 'name brand' (e.g. Hauppauge) rather than some unknown card.

My suggestion to you is stick with your I3 system & Windows. Linux can be a pain in the rear & demands a lot of tweaking. Check out a good Home Theater in a box such as the entry level Onkyo or Denon package with speakers.

Go thru the forums and read up in Assassin's Guide & renethx's Guide to Building a HD HTPC. Both renethx & assassin have a wealth of information in those two sections.

ps- send that old laptop to a recycle center. LCD monitors are dirt cheap today.

?1.high def. is 720 or higher what definition is blue ray rated at?
?2.when you say BD burners are available for $100. will this record?any recommendations?
?3.can a regular -R DVD be used for a BD recording?

I have been reading a little about HTPC currently using a I3 LT still in research stage for a dedicated HTPC mainly for Hi def. recording catorizing shows and music ect.

I like the case you have, nice appearance and room for expansion.
?4.did you have alinement issuses w/ the MOBO and PSU holes in the case I've read some holes will require drilling?
?5.when you installed the TV tuner card was it diffuacult to break off the rear expandsion cover I'm assumming you remove this cover before installing the MOBO? I'm assumming it has to be grinded off?

?6.I have my audio from out of my LTs headphone connection to the in of my Yamaha AVR,
curious to know how a real HTPC makes this audio connection?maybe HDMI?
I do have a HDMI out of my LT however I'm currently using a VGA cable and VGA only surports video.

?7.when I initially connected my LT I tryed to connect to the HDMI input of the AVR unsuccesfully
doe's even a real HTPC require being plugged directly to TV?
Thanks
STB

Sounds like you want to rip Blu Ray movies down to a smaller size then put them on DVD's. Great idea. Something like Handbrake can do that. All you need is a drive that plays back Blu Ray & will burn DVD. Those are @$80 or so.

I love my NMedia case. Yes, it requires some patience putting everything in. My choice of components fit just fine. The little covers on the back of the case snap off easily. Just a little twisting with hand tools- a screwdriver inserted into a slot in my case. Some of the holes tapped for screws were a hair off. But with patience you can make everything fit.

Please take some time and read the threads started by Assassin & Renethx. Those are geared more towards answering your questions than this thread. This thread is a great place to get ideas for placing your system in a room after you've built it.

Read up in Renethx's thread on suggested systems. Again, you will most likely want a system with an I3 cpu, Windows 7, & Media Center for playing movies, etc.. HDMI cables will pass audio & video signals. Plug your HDMI cable into a good HTIB (Home Theater In a Box). Read read read, & Google is your friend. Also, go to sites like Newegg.com & Amazon.com where people submit reviews. That is what I did for almost a year. Most of all, buy what works for YOU & enjoy it :-)

What theme is this? While I'm not a fan of the setttings screen everything else looks really nice. I'm new to XBMC and am still using the default skin.

Have never used any of the media programs, just using mine like a standard pc, so a dumb question here is are you just ripping your blurays to your pc and then the software catalogs it or is that just a list of what you have?

Seeing everybody's rigs really make me want to get back into the HTPC. I currently have one but it's for regular DVD only. I want to build a HD-HTPC but my main concern is can you really get 1080P blu-ray and DTS-MA/DD-HD bitstream to the receiver?

Have never used any of the media programs, just using mine like a standard pc, so a dumb question here is are you just ripping your blurays to your pc and then the software catalogs it or is that just a list of what you have?

thanks

I use MyMovies and it works great. Here is a screen shot of what the catalog looks like. This is not my image but someone else's.